


Brothers

by ml101



Series: Brothers [2]
Category: The Hour, The Thick of It (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Daddy!Malcolm, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-11
Updated: 2016-09-11
Packaged: 2018-08-14 08:17:39
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,252
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8005384
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ml101/pseuds/ml101
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The brotherhood that will lift them through difficult times. (A time in each brother’s life when they needed their twin the most.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Brothers

**Author's Note:**

> So I posted this way back on Tumblr and decided to put it up here on AO3 as well.
> 
> A few years back, I got this idea to have Randall and Malcolm be twins with Randall being the older brother. So here is another something I had written. Spoilers for people who haven’t finished watching The Hour (which is a little questionable if you haven’t)

“Malcolm?”

Malcolm rubbed his tired eyes to wakefulness as he heard the very worried voice of his sister-in-law on the other end of his phone. “Lix? What’s wrong?”

“Randall hasn’t been home,” replied Lix, hurriedly. Lix Storm Brown was a tough woman. She wouldn’t easily get worried over her husband but given the circumstances…she couldn’t help but call her husband’s twin brother for help. “You know him just as much as I do, Malcolm. Maybe even better. I’m worried.”

Malcolm sighed and mentally cursed his brother for making his wife like this. “I’ll go find him. I’m pretty sure I know where he is. Why don’t you pack and I’ll have Will pick you up so you two can spend the night?”

“I wouldn’t want to be a burden to you and Jen.”

“Nonsense,” said Malcolm. “It’s the least I can do to make up for my brother’s stupidity.”

* * *

“You need to stop punishing your wife like this, Randall.” said a voice from behind the man. Randall Brown didn’t acknowledge the voice of his twin brother and remained seated on the ground facing the headstone.

Randall Brown a full minute older than Malcolm Tucker but Malcolm sometimes felt like he was the older brother guiding his younger brother away from trouble. Their parents had decided to split up, putting their respective careers in front of them rather than raising a family. Neither parents wanted to give up their current lives, their father being a journalist and their mother inheriting the family business back in Scotland. Randall and Malcolm were raised apart but would spend time together during holidays.

“Come on, Randall,” began Malcolm, still standing behind his brother. “Lix’ worried about ya and frankly it’s fucking cold out here.”

“Then go home,” came the harsh reply. “I didn’t ask you to be here.”

“Yeah well your wife is fucking worried sick about ya, frankly I’m worried too,” fired back Malcolm. Malcolm glared at the his brother who still wouldn’t stop gazing at the grave in front of him. “Randall…it’s been 6 months.”

“It could be ten years and it’ll feel the same, Malcolm,” replied Randall in his usual tone of voice. “We lost her. I lost her. I wasn’t even able to help her.”

Malcolm sighed. Sophia Elizabeth Brown had died due to an illness roughly six months ago. Unfortunately, Randall had been on assignment that faithful day and wasn’t there for the last moments of his daughter’s life.

Malcolm sighed and sat beside his brother gazing at the grave in front of them. Truth be told, Malcolm didn’t know what he could say to Randall. He doesn’t know how it feels to lose a child seeing as he and his wife Jenna had been married less than a year ago. He did the only thing he knew which was place an around his brother’s shoulders.

“She feels the same way, Randall,” said Malcolm, his voice soft. “And it’s better to hurt together than wallow on your own and have everyone think you’ve offed yourself.”

Randall didn’t move or say anything and Malcolm took this as a sign to continue.

“You’re hurting, she’s hurting and worried about you,” said Malcolm. “She’s topping you.”

Randall shook his head and sighed. “Times like this and your reasoning is about who is winning in a hurting game?”

“Well it’s the only way I know that will get under your nerves,” said Malcolm, a smile forming on his lips. “Come on, I’ve asked Will to take Lix to my house. You two can spend the week there.”

* * *

 

*Eleven Years later

“Have you heard?” said Lix, entering Randall’s office without the man’s call.

“Hello to you too,” said Randall, too busy shifting through the different articles on his desk to look up at his wife. “And no I haven’t heard anything news worthy other than it’s almost five years since we welcomed a new millennium.”

“Our newly elected Prime Minister’s Director of Communication,” said Lix. “Randall, it’s Malcolm.”

Randall stared at Lix as though what she said was the worst possible thing to happen. “You’re joking, right?”

“Freddie and Bel heard it from Tom himself,” said Lix. “He’s taking the job Randall and we both know why. He’s swallowed himself up with politics ever since Jenna…you need to talk to him.”

“Like he’ll listen to me,” said Randall, sitting down and rubbing his head in stress. Malcolm was a journalist like he was and now he’s giving that up for a position in the government. What was his brother thinking?

* * *

“Good evening, sir,” greeted Will as he opened the door to admit the man inside. “Malcolm is currently cooking dinner. Will you, Mrs. Brown and little Ben be joining us?”

“No, Will,” said Randall. “I just need to talk to my brother. Is Michelle around?”

“Looking after young Jake sir,” replied Will as he led them to the kitchen. “Sir, your brother is here.”

“I figured as much,” replied Malcolm, not taking his attention away from the dinner he was preparing. “Want some tea, Randall?”

“Yes, please,” said Randall as he sat on one of the stools and watched Malcolm be in his favorite part of the house. “I think we both know why I’m here.”

“And we both know that you already know the answer to your question and no I’m not going to reconsider.” replied Malcolm, setting a cup in front of his twin brother.

“Malcolm…”

“Please Randall,” said Malcolm, his back to his brother. Randall noticed that Malcolm did turn off the stove and well his brother was distracted. “You know I have to do this.”

“How sure are you that this is what Jenna wants?” asked Randall.

“Because I promised her that I won’t let politics enter the lives of our children,” said Malcolm, still not looking back at his brother. “The best way I do that is with this job.”

“You told me once that it’s better to hurt with someone than by yourself,” began Randall, remembering their little scene at the graveyard roughly a decade ago.

Malcolm sighed and couldn’t repress a smile on his face as he turned to face his brother. “We may be twins but we deal with grief in totally different ways. You would run and be by yourself whilst I am going to make others share my misery.”

Randall rolled his eyes and shook his head. Malcolm had been chosen to be the Labour Party’s Director of Communication no less than a year ago and he’s been building a reputation for himself. He’s basically scared off numerous MPs to be just by glaring at them.

“I’m going to channel my grief out on this job because I don’t need it here inside my house,” said Malcolm. “I know it sounds mad but that’s the only thing I can do. Mitch and Jake already lost a mum…they don’t need to lose a father as well.”

Randall sighed and looked at his brother straight in the eyes. He shook his head and couldn’t help but smile. “Why do you sound so insightful and mature? Here I thought I was the older brother.”

Malcolm laughed and walked over to his brother. “You are the older brother. The older, boring, dreary brother who will always look after his younger twin.”

“You got that right,” said Randall. “You better prepare yourself. You may scare MPs away but don’t think for a second you can scare my journalists without a fight.”

“Oh I’m taking that as a challenge.”

**Author's Note:**

> Also posted on tumblr :) (http://wierdogal.tumblr.com/post/93940950538/the-hourthe-thick-of-it-crossover-brothers)


End file.
